Citi has been selected by BondEvalue to act as a custodian for the underlying bonds traded on its digital exchange as fractionalized assets (BondbloX). BondEvalue, a Singaporean fintech company founded in 2016, launched the world’s first fractional bond exchange in October 2020 after graduating from the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Sandbox Express programme as a recognized market operator.
“This partnership is another milestone in our digital transformation,” says Ryan Marsh, global head, distributed ledger technology (DLT) and digital innovation, for Citi Securities Services. “The work we are doing with BondEvalue creates a foundation that will enable us to evolve our capabilities to support the digitization of markets and assets, while helping BondEvalue in their mission to broaden transparency and democratize access to the bond markets.”
Rahul Banerjee, co-founder of BondEvalue, adds: “Our focus is on bringing the efficiency of exchanges to the bond market. Now, bonds are for everyone. Citi is one of the few banks that share our zeal for innovating, and therefore they are a natural fit to be our custodian."
Under the agreement, Citi will provide asset safekeeping and servicing solutions. The bank says the collaboration with BondEvalue advances its objective of enhancing its securities services’ operating model and capabilities to deliver a more efficient end-to-end investment process to clients.
Citi Securities Services has over US$24.9 trillion of assets under custody and administration and a proprietary network spanning over 60 markets.